Oakland Raiders Not on the Way Out of Town Just Yet

Dec 21, 2014; Oakland, CA, USA; Oakland Raiders fans tailgate before the game against the Buffalo Bills at O.co Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

The Brand

Some like to believe that Davis is full of it when saying that he’s doing everything he can to stay. But the Raiders have strong ties to the community and even Davis to some degree is bound by them. And as KUSI News mentioned, the Raiders have a national brand they want to protect, and staying in Oakland is how they do that.

Football team’s are most profitable when that team represents the that area. Of course, you have to win to but you have to do it a certain way like the Pittsburgh Steelers coming from a blue-collar city. Oakland is also a blue-collar city and their rivalry with the Steelers back in the ’70s was based on that.

Both teams were extremely tough, physical teams and it galvanized their respective cities. And America tuned in to see which team was going to be the toughest when they played on television. While the Raiders have struggled to get things back together, the division rival Baltimore Ravens have taken the Raiders place.

Look at what Pete Carroll has taken to Seattle, a tough, physical team to represent them. L.A. isn’t the match for the underdog Raiders Oakland is as they are known to have the glamorous teams. The San Francisco 49ers and Dallas Cowboys are glamour teams that come from glamour cities.

Even though both teams were physical when they won, they featured their quarterbacks and offenses. The Steelers don’t match L.A. any more than the Cowboys match Pittsburgh. A team’s city and team need to match in order for the national brand to be created.

Next: Logjam in Los Angeles Race